TENTH SCHEDULE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA 1949

ARTICLE 102(2) and 191(2)

Provisions as to disqualification on ground of defection

1. Interpretation

In this Schedule, unless the context otherwise requires,-

(a) ‘House’ means either House of Parliament or the
Legislative Assembly or, as the case may be, either House of
the Legislature of a State;

(b) ‘legislature party’, in relation to a member of a House
belonging to any political party in accordance with the
provisions of paragraph 2 or paragraph 3 or, as the case may
be, paragraph 4, means the group consisting of all the
members of that House for the time being belonging to that
political party in accordance with the said provisions;

(c) ‘original political party’, in relation to a member of a
House, means the political party to which he belongs for the
purposes of sub-paragraph (1) of paragraph 2;

(d) ‘paragraph’ means a paragraph of this Schedule.

2. Disqualification on ground of defection

(1) Subject to the provisions of paragraphs 3, 4 and 5, a
member of a House belonging to any political party shall be
disqualified for being a member of the House-

(a) if he has voluntarily gives up his membership of such
political party; or

(b) if he votes or abstains from voting in such House
contrary to any direction issued by the political party to
which he belongs or by any person or authority authorized by
it in this behalf, without obtaining, in either case, the
prior permission of such political party, person or
authority and such voting or abstention has not been
condoned by such political party, person or authority within
fifteen days from the date of such voting or abstention.

Explanation.-For the purposes of this sub-paragraph,-

(a) an elected member of a House shall be deemed to belong
to the political party, if any, by which he was set up as a
candidate for election as such member;

(b) a nominated member of a House shall,-

(i) where he is a member of any political party on the date
of his nomination as such member, be deemed to belong to
such political party;

(ii) in any other case, be deemed to belong to the political
party of which he becomes, or, as the case may be, first
becomes a member before the expiry of six months from the
date on which he takes his seat after complying with the
requirements of article 99 or, as the case may be, article
188.

(2) An elected member of a House who has been elected as
such otherwise than as a candidate set up by any political
party shall be disqualified for being a member of the House
if he joins any political party after such election.

(3) A nominated member of a House shall be disqualified for
being a member of the House if he joins any political party
after the expiry of six months from the date on which he
takes his seat after complying with the requirements of
article 99 or, as the case may be, article 188.

(4) Notwithstanding anything contained in the foregoing
provisions of this paragraph, a person who, on the
commencement of the Constitution (Fifty-second Amendment)
Act, 1985, is a member of a House (whether elected or
nominated as such ) shall,-

(i) where he was a member of political party immediately
before such commencement, be deemed, for the purposes of
sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph, to have been elected as
a member of such House as a candidate set up by such
political party;

(ii) in any other case, be deemed to be an elected member of
the House who has been elected as such otherwise than as a
candidate set up by any political party for the purposes of
sub-paragraph (2) of this paragraph or, as the case may be,
deemed to be a nominated member of the House for the
purposes of sub-paragraph (3) of this paragraph.

3.
Disqualification on ground of defection not to apply in case
of split.

Where a member of a House makes a claim that he and any
other members of his legislature party constitute the group
representing a faction which has arisen as a result of a
split in his original political party and such group
consists of not less than one third of the members of such
legislature party,-

(a) he shall not be disqualified under sub-paragraph (1) of
paragraph 2 on the ground-

(i) that he has voluntarily given up his membership of his
original political party; or

(ii) that he has voted or abstained from voting in such
House contrary to any direction issued by such party or by
any person or authority authorized by it in that behalf
without obtaining the prior permission of such party, person
or authority and such voting or abstention has not been
condoned by such party, person or authority within fifteen
days from the date of such voting or abstention; and

(b) from the time of such split, such faction shall be
deemed to be the political party to which he belongs for the
purposes of sub-paragraph (1) of paragraph 2 and to be his
original political party for the purposes of this paragraph.

4. Disqualification on ground of defection not to apply in
case of merger.

(1) A member of a House shall not be disqualified under
sub-paragraph (1) of paragraph 2 where his original
political party merges with another political party and he
claims that he and any other members of his original
political party-

(a) have become members of such other political party or, as
the case may be, of a new political party formed by such
merger; or

(b) have not accepted the merger and opted to function as a
separate group, and from the time of such merger, such other
political party or new political party or group, as the case
may be, shall be deemed to be the political party to which
he belongs for the purposes of sub-paragraph (1) of
paragraph 2 and to be his original political party for the
purposes of this sub-paragraph.

(2) For the purposes of sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph,
the merger of the original political party of a member of a
House shall be deemed to have taken place if, and only if,
not less than two-thirds of the members of the legislature
party concerned have agreed to such merger.

5. Exemption.

Notwithstanding anything contained in this Schedule, a
person who has been elected to the office of the Speaker or
the Deputy Speaker of the House of the People or the Deputy
Chairman of the Council of States or the Chairman or the
Deputy Chairman of the Legislative Council of a State or the
Speaker or the Deputy Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of
a State, shall not be disqualified under this Schedule,-

(a) if he, by reason of his election to such office,
voluntarily gives up the membership of the political party
to which he belonged immediately before such election and
does not, so long as he continues to hold such office
thereafter, rejoin that political party or become a member
of another political party; or

(b) if he, having given up by reason of his election to such
office his membership of the political party to which he
belonged immediately before such election, rejoins such
political party after he ceases to hold such office.

6.
Decision on questions as to disqualification on ground of
defection.

(1) If any question arises as to whether a member of a
House has become subject to disqualification under this
Schedule, the question shall be referred for the decision of
the Chairman or, as the case may be, the Speaker of such
House and his decision shall be final:

Provided that where the question which has arisen is as to
whether the Chairman or the Speaker of a House has become
subject to such disqualification, the question shall be
referred for the decision of such member of the House as the
House may elect in this behalf and his decision shall be
final.

(2) All proceedings under sub-paragraph (1) of this
paragraph in relation to any question as to disqualification
of a member of a House under this Schedule shall be deemed
to be proceedings in Parliament within the meaning of
article 122 or, as the case may be, proceedings in the
Legislature of a State within the meaning of article 212.

7. Bar of jurisdiction of courts.

Notwithstanding anything in this Constitution, no court
shall have any jurisdiction in respect of any matter
connected with the disqualification of a member of a House
under this Schedule.

8. Rules.

(1) Subject to the provisions of sub-paragraph (2) of
this paragraph, the Chairman or the Speaker of a House may
make rules for giving effect to the provisions of this
Schedule, and in particular, and without prejudice to the
generality of the foregoing, such rules may provide for-

(a) the maintenance of registers or other records as to the
political parties if any, to which different members of the
House belong;

(b) the report which the leader of a legislature party in
relation to a member of a House shall furnish with regard to
any condonation of the nature referred to in clause (b) of
sub-paragraph (1) of paragraph 2 in respect of such member,
the time within which and the authority to whom such report
shall be furnished;

(c) the reports which a political party shall furnish with
regard to admission to such political party of any members
of the House and the officer of the House to whom such
reports shall be furnished; and

(d) the procedure for deciding any question referred to in
sub-paragraph (1) of paragraph 6 including the procedure for
any inquiry which may be made for the purpose of deciding
such question.

(2) The rules made by the Chairman or the Speaker of a House
under sub-paragraph (1) of this paragraph shall be laid as
soon as may be after they are made before the House for a
total period of thirty days which may be comprised in one
session or in two or more successive sessions and shall take
effect upon the expiry of the said period of thirty days
unless they are sooner approved with or without
modifications or disapproved by the House and where they are
so approved, they shall take effect on such approval in the
form in which they were laid or in such modified form, as
the case may be, and where they are so disapproved, they
shall be of no effect.

(3) The Chairman or the Speaker of a House may, without
prejudice to the provisions of article 105 or, as the case
may be, article 194, and to any other power which he may
have under this Constitution direct that any willful
contravention by any person of the rules made under this
paragraph may be dealt with in the same manner as a breach
of privilege of the House.